Hunter of Mysterious Creature

Chapter 862 - 100: Sky-High Bounty

"So what do you think would be a good reward?"

"Although many experts aren’t that interested in money, the vast majority of Hunters risk their lives in the uninhabited zones just for that little bit of material wealth... Using money as a reward is also the most convenient, after all, for you right now, money is just a number," Candle Dragon said.

"That works... Let’s do it this way, a total bounty of five billion, distributed based on contribution during the mission, and an additional one million compensation for each casualty. The entire mission will be monitored by the mainframe the whole time, so I suppose there won’t be an issue with unfair distribution, right?"

"How much?" Although Candle Dragon just said that money was only a number to Sun Hang, he was still taken aback when he heard the bounty amount Sun Hang announced, "Are you sure it’s... five billion?"

"Dubhe Tower should be able to come up with that, right?"

"We can, but this will make the budgets for other projects this year extremely tight, and the Federation Council will intervene in the investigation... In short, a whole heap of trouble awaits us..."

"Them, not us. They can’t trace it back to me anyway," Sun Hang said nonchalantly, "I just wanted to test if the quantity leads to a qualitative change, can this also be proven with money."

Candle Dragon: "..."

"Also, let’s add one more thing, the person who contributes the most, in my personal capacity, I can grant him one not-too-excessive request, though the final interpretation of this request is at my discretion, think of it as a bonus." Sun Hang added.

...

One minute after the mission was released.

"This mission has currently been accepted by 167 people. All remaining survivors from the Nanhua Town treasure hunt have accepted, and several teams are currently on their way from Dragon City and Yumen here," the mainframe said, "In addition, in major inland cities like Chunming City, Shen City, and Chang’an City, there’s been a rush among Hunters to buy tickets and transport to Dragon City, and it’s estimated that in two to three days, the number of people taking the mission will exceed a thousand."

Because Sun Hang limited the mission to only Hunters from Yumen and Dragon City, Hunters from other regions will have to reach Dragon City before they can take the mission, we can imagine, under the lure of this astronomical bounty, how many Hunters and mercenaries will flood into this fortress city in the coming period.

"So this is the power of money..." Hearing this news, Candle Dragon couldn’t help but sigh.

"Received a communication request from Nagano Souta," the voice of the mainframe sounded again.

Sun Hang: "Connect."

"Did you encounter that giant insect-type aberration in Nanhua Town?" Nagano Souta asked straight to the point.

"Yes."

"So... did you see that thing?"

"Although this answer might disappoint you a bit, I have to tell you that your father’s stubbornness was merely an illusion," Sun Hang said, "An illusion generated in his mind by the aberration."

Nagano Souta was silent for a few seconds, then said, "Thank you, but I’m not disappointed... It’s just that a knot in my heart for many years has been untied, and there’s a bit of emptiness inside."

"So are you planning to return to Yumen now, or..."

"I’ll take the remaining convoy to Nanhua Town," Nagano Souta said, "An enormous aberration like this is the perfect opponent for ’White Tiger.’"

After speaking, there was a burst of static noise in the communication channel, Sun Hang wasn’t sure if the signal was interfered with or if Nagano Souta had cut off the communication himself.

"He doesn’t plan to go back," Candle Dragon sighed, "The drivers of the Four Divine Beasts are all consumables... For him, burning himself out on the battlefield might mean more than plugging tubes and dying in bed."

...

Meanwhile, 75 kilometers away from Nanhua Town.

The convoy led by Nagano Souta had been speeding through the wilderness for nearly half an hour before they finally had to stop.

With the giants in Giant Hill being disturbed, the convoy had no choice but to take a detour — but a detour doesn’t necessarily mean safety, especially a route rarely traveled by people, filled with unpredictable dangers.

Giant Hill is dangerous, but with enough caution, it’s a safe passage... This is the experience gathered by countless Hunters borrowing this route.

Although every year some fool wakes the giants and ends up buried in Giant Hill, to cross this area, any guide’s first choice route is still through Giant Hill.

The reason is simple, other routes are even more dangerous than Giant Hill.

Especially when your own capabilities are not very strong — statistically, Giant Hill has a more than 90% safe pass-through rate, while other routes offer ordinary Hunters less than a 60% chance of getting through safely.

In those regions overrun with terrifying aberrations, no matter how cautious, the moment you step into them, the aberrations will catch onto the intruder’s trail... They are not like the giants, who, when undisturbed, resemble statues asleep in the Desert Sea. Passing through their territory, combat is nearly unavoidable.

"Check your tires, fuel tank, and ammunition!" A seasoned Hunter shouted to the others from his car window, "Ahead is the territory of the meat-eating ants, these deadly bugs eat rubber and metal as fast as they eat your flesh, so don’t let them on your tires or under the vehicle! If you have any flamethrowers, take them out, they’re the best against meat-eating ants!"

"Who brings a flamethrower to a mission like this..." A mercenary said with a bitter face, "If I had known we’d go through the meat-eating ants’ territory, I wouldn’t have taken this mission."

"If you don’t have a flamethrower, make one yourself!" Another mercenary said, he pulled the car’s rear fuel tank out, grabbed some empty water bottles, and filled them with gasoline.

"What are you doing? Molotov cocktails?" The previously speaking mercenary asked confusedly, "Surely these few Molotov cocktails aren’t enough?"

"Didn’t you make simple water guns with drink bottles when you were a kid?" The mercenary looked at his companion as if he were an idiot, then said, "Watch, I’ll demonstrate once."

He then screwed the cap onto the water bottle, quickly punched a dozen small holes in the cap with the tip of a dagger.

He then squeezed the bottle, causing gasoline to spray out from those dozen small holes like a mini sprinkler.

"Get a lighter, light it a little below the bottle opening, and this thing becomes a homemade flamethrower," said the mercenary, "The only downside is that gasoline doesn’t stick as well as specialized combustibles... But it should be enough to deal with ants."